Opening Day 2008

My apologies. I was wrong and the 2008 schedule won’t be on the team photo calendar this weekend, but the tentative version will be online tomorrow so keep an eye out for it. I can tell you, though, that we will be opening up at home against the Giants at Dodger Stadium, celebrating 50 years of Major League Baseball in California.

Here’s the lineup for tonight:

Pierre, CF

Young, LF

Kemp, RF

Loney, 1B

Martin, C

LaRoche, 3B

Valdez, 2B

Hu, SS

Loaiza, P

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Example: Gonzo. Check back to games he plays and see how many times someone says “i hate gonzo”. Then look at times where he hits a home run and no one says anything about it. And instead, call it a lucky home run because the pitcher who gave it up wasn’t that good and had a high era. If you ask me, that would be something a giants fan would say if Gonzo hit a home run against them. Something i don’t expect from a fellow Dodger fan when Gonzo us playing for us.

Nice Line up. I like it. Too bad we’re facing Morales. He’s a pretty good pitcher. He outduled Peavy the last time he pitched. So, I think he’s going to make some of our kids look bad today. Having no fossils in our lineup is alright with me.

Gonzo has not been a bad player in terms of perfromance. He actually did better then I expected offensively. But his defense and lack of range are just too glaring to overlook.

But the defense was known then they signed him. Still when put out there beside a weak fielding CF’er makes Gonzo’s problems even worse.

And don’t forget that first game of the year…it was HORRIBLE…as I recally he did not even show up early for some fly balls in order to get a gauge on judging them for the early start time and the sun/shadows.

A lot of little things took a toll on many fans. So best he just go and find a home elsewhere. Not a good match…but he is a gamer who tries and gives 100% every time out.

good point man. sorry i misinterpreted your comments. Hopefully i didn’t some too harsh, but it’s hard to convey true emotions when all you’re doing is typing.

and i agree….i should stop trying to post about situations like those because they always turn into arguments. Sometimes it’s just hard because i feel like certain responses are underserved and i hate seeing some of our guys get hated on so badly. O wells!

hey, i know it’s last minute, but i have two extra tickets tonight i’m trying to get rid of.. you can watch the kids while getting a free fleece blanket! they’re infield reserve, section 4, row E.. great seats.. discounted at $30 for both seats.. please reply here, or send me an email if you’re interested.. thanks!

How about that guy scoring all the way from 2B on Martin’s errant throw the other night? JP was picking his nose back by the warning track and was only able to throw a little dribbler that barley reached the mound.

Don’t judge LaRoche on 98 ******** MLB PAs. His minor-league numbers, adjusted for parks/leagues, taking peripherals into account (K/PA, K/BB), give him better hitting credentials than Loney and Kemp. (And he just turned 24 this month, actually – still young.) He has had adjustment periods with more of his promotions, but he does rake. Be patient.

Well, the saying used to be, “with 2 outs the runners will be going…” But with JP in CF, not only do the runners not need to be going, but the slowest guy on the other team can score from 2B on anything hit to CF. Nice piece of mind for the pitching staff.

scott: also, don’t forget in the same game, Matsui tagged and went to second STANDING UP on a fly that JP camped under and caught about 15-20 feet from the warning track. His arm is the worst I’ve seen in CF for the Dodgers since maybe Jimmy Wynn (with a screwed-up elbow), who at least made up for it with a HUGE power bat.

As one “old fogey” to another .. it brings tears to my eyes to watch JP try to throw and when you couple that with his inability to drive in runs even with a sac fly you wonder what Ned saw in him in the first place … Oops I forgot … He’s fast .. very fast.

But as his performance declined and it became apparent he was pressing for playing time to the detriment of the team, I started to resent that. But that all goes back to Grady Little, who should’ve been willing to say more often that Gonzalez should sit.

But underneath that is the mindless commitment to playing Pierre every game. An OF of Gonzalez-Ethier-Kemp might’ve been our best OF option, but we never once used it. Why? Isn’t winning the point?

Well Jon not to sound obvious, but they honestly must not have thought that right? I mean I don’t know whats worse? If they really think that 162 games of JP is the answer or if they played him for reasons other than winning.

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But underneath that is the mindless commitment to playing Pierre every game. An OF of Gonzalez-Ethier-Kemp might’ve been our best OF option, but we never once used it. Why? Isn’t winning the point?

More nonsense complaining about Pierre… He will keep playing because he needs five more runs to get 100 and Grady will let him try for it. The season is over.. players with personal goals that are in possible reach will get playing time.

JP Has had a good year.. He is certainly not the reason we lost… he was on fire the second half of the season when the team started tanking… I never understood the hostility for him on here and I still don’t. He is a good player and deserves his spot in the lineup.

Great lineup! Too bad Abreu is injured. I would love to see him at 2B with this lineup. Too bad Ethier isn’t in the lineup either. Also, note to Grady Little and Juan Pierre. Juan is not Cal Ripken Jr. so enough harping up on the consecutive games streak already. It’s ridiculous!

Karim Garcia’s BB and K stats were horrible though (~3:1 K/BB), which translates to getting owned by major league pitchers. And he played AAA at Albuquerque, the most number inflating place there is, far worse than even Vegas.

Ethier is one of our slowest baserunners. Him and Loney are the 2 young kids with the worst speed. Just watch Ethier run the bases. I’m not making it up.

I recall one instance where Ethier was on 2nd base, and was sacrificed to third, but he got called out at 3rd by at least 3 steps. He probably didn’t even have to slide in fact since he was out by a mile.

Guys, compare Ethier’s August and September numbers to JP.. Ethier has slumped badly at the end of the season both of the last two seasons… JP had a terrific second half.. he practicaly was the only one getting on base the last few weeks and yet people idioticaly kept calling for his benching.

an the bunt wasn’t directly to the pitcher i might add. It was deadened between the mound and home plate. He either got a bad jump on the sacrifice or something.

To be honest, i didn’t pay much attention to Ethier’s base running until Vin pointed it out one day during a broadcast. I found it odd since he wasn’t bulky or anything, so you would think he would be pretty good on the basepaths. Thus, when he’s on base, i tend to pay more attention to him an thus i concluded that Vin was right.

I can’t agree with you but then the Pierre issue has polarised a lot of Dodger supporters. His hits are mainly squibs that his speed gets him on. Yes he’s a fine basesteeller but his OBP is horrible .. yes he scores runs but he can’t bat runs in. In just the last couple of games he came up with the chance to be a winner and failed to hit the ball out of the infield. He hasn’t had a sac fly ( to my knowledge) all season .. he has possibly the weakest arm in the history of the game and thank God he scores runs because baserunners run on him at will …all that and he cost the earth and will cost the earth for 4 more years.

There is a place in MLB for a fast runner but not at what JP has cost us.

Esteban Loaisa & a very young Dodger Lineup. I predict we’re going to win, because I don’t think we stand a chance against a hot team that’s flying higher than that blue sky above. I like to get to win number 81. Here’s hoping Loaisa brought his stuff with him and cuts down on the walks and doesn’t have to aim it in and then the Rox will send it our the wall. LET’S GO YOU YOUNG WIPERSNAPEN DODGERS.

Ethier is slow, but his arm in CF would still be better than Pierre playing CF. No one would tag up on a shallow fly ball from first to second on Ethier’s arm. Thats pathetic. Plus ethier’s numbers would look alot better in CF than they do in RF or LF. He’s not a starting outfield in an outfield that also contains pierre and gonzo. And while consistent playing time might be an issue in terms of him showing what he can truly do he still has alot of ABs to work with.

Rod, a hit is a hit. You get on base.. doesn’t matter what kindof hit… When he gets on base, he distracts the pitcher with his speed and allows the batters after him to get more fastballs. As for not driving guys in lately, well he rarely has runners on ahead of him since the #8 and 9 hitters have been dreafull lately and Furcal was weak this year.. Also I can also remember a number of times where Kemp came up in those situations you mention and wound up striking out.

As I said Spanner the Pierre issue will polarise us for years to come .. You praise his positives without consideration of his negatives and I’m most likely guilty of exactly the opposite. I’ll never be convinced however that he represents good value for the money we pay him.

And a hit is not a hit. Even you don’t belive that. I mean make your case for Pierre, it’s cool but come on.

A triple is much better than a single. A homerun is better than a double. Chris Young who has 50 less hits have driven himself in 5 less times on HR’s alone than JP has driven in other players all season.

JP’s .331 OBP this season is terrible for a top 1/3 of the order hitter (really for the top 2/3) – he doesn’t get on base enough. His August .361 and September .381 are acceptable and very good, respectively, IF THEY WERE FOR THE WHOLE SEASON. (For comparison, Brett Butler’s career OBP is .377; for ’91, ’92 and ’94 for the Dodgers is was over .400.) Unfortunately, all 162 games count. (Well, this season the last three Dodgers’ games matter for neither team.)

In other words, Pierre has to be at his hottest ALL SEASON long to be acceptable to very good, as a batter – and he’s still a terrible thrower.

You can put up with paltry defense when someone’s bat is great. With pierre its like which is worse, the offense or the defense? Im not trying to downplay what his skills are, just that he still contributes very little in the grand scheme of things.

I have an issue with Pierre’s defense, his arm in particular and him popping the ball up all the time. He reminds me of Willie Mays Hayes from Major League. I think Grady should make him do 20 push ups at home plate every time he pops the ball up.

C’mon Rocks! Sweep this team. AZ won, Phils are winning, Mets are losing, Cubs already lost, which gives the Brewers even more incentive to beat SD. We need the Padres to be sitting at home too. Plus if this team finished under .500 McCourt might have the balls to fix some of the front office problems.

The guy is hitting .292 for petes sake.. give him a break. Thats better than Ethier and Furcal.. It’s like you guys think he is the reason we lost a playoff spot… and you ignore the flaws of the younger players…. praising them to high heaven so their egos can inflate some more..

Spanner we just are trying to say that .292 dosen’t mean ****. And yeah I do think he is part of the reason we are not in the playoffs. 0 HR, 30 extra base hits. 50 infield singles..Can’t situational hit because he can’t hit gaps…And you seem to ignore his lack of defense.

Fogey I agree..I didn’t mean all three at once. Thats 2003 all over again. lol

Furcal’s OBP and Slg are nearly identical to Pierre’s:
.333/.355 vs. .331/.352 and this is Furcal’s worst year ever! Ankle injury or not, JP and Furcal putting those numbers up at the top of the order killed the Dodgers.

Spanner .. Mate as I said earlier you can’t look at the good and disregard the bad .. it’s indefensible…. and in your opinion is he worth what we’re paying him? As for being untradeable … If you were a GM would you take on his salary for the next 4 years?

rodmky, It is the unrelenting hostility on this board that bothers me.. mostly toward JP and Gonzo… you guys all ignore the good and focus on the bad…. pounding away continuously… Who cares what he is being paid? It aint my money or yours! And he already has the contract, they cant just cut him.. so he is gonna be on the team wether you like it or not.

spanner, we are Dodger fans. we want to see a good team on the field. It is not our money, but the budget is finite and we want to see the GM spend it wisely. If the money is blown on mediocre players like Pierre, (or worse than mediocre like Tomko), then where does the money come from to pay good player or acquire that one key, true centerpiece free agent like Johan Santana after next year, or ARod this year?

spanner, the key is that batting average leaves so many plate appearances out of the equation. The key to baseball is that outs are costly (that’s why a certain play is called a “sacrifice” – you’re giving up something important) because this is a game where almost all batter will fail over 60% of the time (how many have OBP > .400). Make outs at a higher rate, score less runs. Make outs at a lower rate and the hits you do get are more valuable because you have baserunners out there more often. Because BA ignores walks, it doesn’t reflect how well a player avoids outs. OBP does. 1 – OBP is almost the same as an out rate (SF hurts your OBP, but SB, HBP, CI are ignored) so a low OBP means a high out rate. You do not want a high out rate in the top spots in your batting order, that’s putting yourself behind the eight-ball.

D. Young played mostly 2B in the minors, but was moved to the OF because the coaches, and Young himself, judged him to be a poor 2B. So number of games at a position in the minors is not enough to say Kemp is a CF.

Personally, I think he would be good enough, esp. given that stick. He has speed to make up for sometime bad routes (like JP), speed to help with range (like JP), and a strong arm (ummm.)

No, you want a strong arm in right and, preferably, a decent-armed good OF with range in CF. If Matt Kemp were, instead, Willie Mays, I’d play Willie in CF and Ethier in right, even though Willie has a better arm.

Most CF’s are speedy. Fast enough to chase a fly ball hit in the deepest part of the park, usually balls hit there stays in the park.
You can have the strongest arm in the world, but there’s no way youre gonna throw out a runner tagging from third. Thats the job for the LF and RF.

Pierre’s strength is his speed and offense. But he is an average CF and has a weak arm.

With that kind of attributes. He gets used mostly to beat out ground balls, steal bases, be a distraction to the opposing pitchers while on base and on defense hope the other team dont hit the ball in centerfield with a runner tagging from first with less than 2 outs.

If ‘dodger insiders’ actually agree with anything voiced in Jeff Kent’s selfish, inconsiderate rant as reported by Bill Plaschke then they may as well ask the Padres about the availability of Milton Bradley. Kent acts out like a kid to reporters and that means the young players that make rookie mistakes around him should be traded? This makes zero sense to me.

How about you sit down with Kent, remind him that he signed up to be a veteran anchor/leader for a team of young players, and since he’s made it obvious that this is beyond his capability, he can come back at 9 million and take over Olmedo Saenz pinch hitting role, or retire. His choice.

Kent’s brand of clubhouse leadership–passively aggresively say nothing until the team is losing, then blaming everyone else while taking no responsibility for his own poor play, isn’t welcome. His memory is short as he made some baserunning blunders worse than anything I’ve seen Matt Kemp ever do (drew/kent futility slides into home).

You don’t have to be serious 100% of the time to respect the game of baseball. Playing a game you don’t enjoy playing for so long to me is far more disrespectful to the game than young men just being young men playing a game. It’s not enjoyable to watch Kent play the game, because he doesn’t have fun, and it shows. He’s the closest thing to the face of the franchise L.A. has, and what a surly, unnecessarily

angry face of a franchise it is here in laid back Los Angeles.

Get rid of Kent, he’s outlived his usefulness. The kids will grow up fine. They’re men now and don’t need disciplinarian daddies to make sure they’re scared straight.

I echo James Loney’s sentiment to the effect that who says Jeff Kent was a clubhouse leader, anyways?

Kent, you need to take losing like a man instead of like a kindergartner before you start talking about how having you around is helpful for a bunch of talented, younger players. Matt Kemp, Russell Martin and James Loney all showed more class than you did after losing in your comments to the media

Bluebleeder, I understand; I would rather see someone other than the Padres in the playoffs as well. My comment is more of a statement of how things have gone the past few weeks that rather than talking about possible playoff opponents we are mired in such disappointment.

Well, how many shutout innings is it w/all the “kids” playing? And LaRoche w/15-20 HRs-I doubt it. Let’s get some of the “ole fogies” back in there! “The Kids” aren’t doing whay everyone thought they would!!!!

Finally the voice of reason. click the link.. everyone should read this and roll with it and support it….

about the writer…

Ross Newhan has devoted over four decades of his life to covering baseball.

Ross Newhan (National Baseball Hall of Fame)

He began his career in 1961 with the Long Beach Press-Telegram, covering the Los Angeles Angels. In 1967, he was hired by the Los Angeles Times, where he served as a traveling beat writer, covering the Angels and Dodgers. He took over as the national baseball writer for the Times in 1985, producing three to four columns weekly. Over his 40-year career, Newhan has won numerous writing awards, including several from the Orange County and Los Angeles press clubs.

Grady said before the game that the Dodgers need to “stay the course” with their young players and their plan and not stray from it. He asked, part rhetorically and part earnestly, what the Dodgers had been doing since they last won the World Series in 1988, a clear reference to the fact the team’s longstanding method of signing high-priced free agents simply hasn’t worked out, and that the current plan of drafting and developing is the right one. Some will applaud what Grady said, while others will dismiss it. But the Rockies are a perfect example of what can happen when you have a lot of young talent, you’re patient, and you allow it to develop. They endured years of growing pains, including a good portion of this year, but it’s all paying off now.

Scoring runs is important, I don’t care if you got great pitching. If you don’t score you can’t win. No matter how you score them even on ground balls. What’s the difference? Especially for a team that has trouble scoring runs.

I’d say the Mets have underachieved more than the Dodgers so far. Amazing how they’ve fallen and lost the lead they built coming into the home stretch.

They’ve got Jose Reyes, David Wright, Carlos Beltran, Carlos Delgado, Alou, Green, Castillo not to mention a good closer in Wagner and decent (not fantastic) pitching, and they might not even win 90 games? Something’s wrong with that, and i’d bet Willie Randolph is on the hot seat for sure.

I for one would like to see the Dodgers end up at least at .500, I don’t think they can do that playing the kids only for the rest of the season. They should have some pride and get some of the more experience player back in the lineup. Unless they don’t care and there is nothing I can do about that.

Yea, I guess in a 10-4 game any run will do-even if the grounder is by our “cleanup hitter”!! If all we have next year is “The Kids”, we’ll definately be where the Giants are this year. Melon did great tonight, don’t you think? 4 earned runs-looking good-kid!

get used to it cable support this man, we haven’t won s-h-i-t since 88. (add a FA pitcher and hitter in prime but otherwise go young)

Dodger.com

“We know the course we’re on and we’re going to stay the course,” Little said, referring to developing from within rather than rebuilding through free agency. “What have they been doing here since 1988? It hasn’t worked. This course, we’ll try to make it work.”

“I foresee Ned trying to do anything he can to make us better and complement the course we’re on,” he said. “The mixture of players I like most is a group of players, regardless of age, who know how to play the right way and go about their business the right way on and off the field and who come to the park every day playing hard and expecting to win a game.”

Meloan struggled for sure. I recall people proclaiming that he would have been able to come up from the minors and gave us productive innings rather than for trading for Proctor and wasting our time bringing in a new reliever when meloan can do the job.

Granted, Proctor hasn’t been lights out, but he’s had his moments here and there and has been good in the bullpen (not as good these past 2 games).

It’ll be hard to imagine that Meloan would have done any better during and after the trade deadline, presumably when we would have brought him up rather than making the proctor trade. Meloan has skills for sure, and has shown some flashes of dominance in the majors. But, at the time of the trading deadline, we were still in the race for the division and wildcard, and i think Ned made the right move in not bringing up a guy from the minors and letting him “learn” how to pitch in the majors and how to adjust to big league hitters on the fly.

From what we’ve seen from Meloan so far, he needs to show more command and control of his pitches. He’s gotten some nice K’s, but he’s given up more balls and baserunners than what any fan would want.

If we try to build with the kids be prepared to wait longer, I think what happened to Arizona doesn’t happen very often. I’m a Dodger fan, all my life I’ll go along with whatever they do. If they can build a powerful lineup like the other 3 teams, I don’t care how long it takes.

Casino don’t you think with regular work he would pitch better, to be fair? Not to say any of these kids don’t have alot to learn and improve and I am not defending specific mistake ever, if they are in the majors they can get looked at critically no matter the age but thats the cool thing about a young team, the upside. They will improve.. Anyways good night everyone…I feel better at least that I can learn to get to know these young guys for all their faults and watch them grow together and compete for rings…I have faith that with some tinkering here or there these guys are ready to break out in 08 as a unit. You gotta admit, all the kids seem to like each other so thats a great sign…

Jungar: I’m used to it-all the clammer for :”The Kids”. They’ve played steadly for how long now?-where has it got us? No wins! It takes the “ole fogies” plus “The Kids” to win. We didn’t have the real power hitter this year that you mentioned. Too bad about Schmidt and Wolf-we could have made it w/them.

of course i do jungar. I’ve heard this same saying with all the young kids when they make mistakes, bad plays, or fail to produce. Not to say it’s not true since we all know that we need to be patient and they will get better with time (just like Kemp has shown), but like i said, in the middle of a division race, i wouldn’t have brought up a guy from the minors and put him right into the fire when games mean something.

There’s going to be growing pains, and i’d rather have proctor than meloan being brought up and rushed into the majors.

Well, if we don’t get any new free agents this winter, and go into next year with mainly kids, then i’m looking for them to produce and bring us to the next level. They don’t have to necessarily bring us into World Series contention, but i want to see us compete for a playoff spot and get better as a cohesive unit.

Not to say that I haven’t seen glimps of that this year. (examples are Kemp, Loney, Ethier and Martin), but i want to see them get to that next level where they’re confident and know that they’re going to get the job done. Whether that’s get a key base hit, start a rally, move the runner over, get a good at-bat, or play smart on the basepaths.

If the Kids are given full-time jobs in spring training, and are in the lineup day in and day out like pierre is right now, then the pressure will be on them to produce what they’ve shown this year. We’re not the Tampa Bay Devil Rays, and we play for championships, and i don’t see any reason why we can’t do it with these kids.

The only problem is that we have to be patient and wait and see what evolves. Only time will tell, and i’m counting down to opening day 2008, because i want to see it happen.

(Casino, I have said a zillion time we HAVE to get a premier offense player and others, some vets included to put in the middle of all this for this to work, next year. It can totally be done. So I agree we need some help to take pressure off the kids, that’s why it needs to be a stud.Yes on keeping Kent if the dodgers/team is good with him and vice versa, same with Lowe, they are just venting. And like yes on sweeney for me for example as a guy to bring back, so it’s still a mix. Next year, no worries we will see Proctor and Meloan and maybe we can add another really dependable bullpen arm to go with Brox, Saito along with a pretty dependable starter to cover for Schmidt while he recovers)

I just read Ken Gurnick’s latest NOTES: Youth Movement To Continue****** If that’s the way they are going, I’ll jump on the bandwagon. Even though I think it will take longer I deep down inside really want it that way. I think I’m a little absest with being afraid they won’t end up with more wins then loses. I also feel looking at guys like Troy Tulowitzki, Matt Holliday, Tod Helton Garrett Atkins Brad Hawp & that’s just the Rockies, the D’backs & Padres are also giving me a complex. I feel at the moment we are building a good team but it looks like the Dodgers are inferior.

Said it spring training and will say it again now this team is lacking in fielding Power and Yes pitching Too much mediocre The Vets get the job done sometimes but the kids hit for avg better.and our pitching is beyond the worst joke in baseball down the stretch….Grady is the worst joke honeycutt and 3rd base are just as bad ned is really not giving me any confidence and Mc Court is a freakin moneyhound! I could care less about names and only want great players who can and will play for LA **** I’m rooting for the **** Rox now as I hate SD worse then SF these last 3 mean nothing and hope we get swept if Grady and his coaches hidge on a winning season……*^%&^the Dodgers this year for what we expected….I’m pissed and you can write me off frank till you grow a pair and get real management to run your team…numbnuts.

I agree jungar. Ive posted it several times on this blog but I think we need to trade Ethier for…whatever, a pitcher maybe and get an outfielder with power.

pierre—I think you’re way off. If you project out Loney, Kemp, and Martins numbers we would be *lucky* to get that out of them all next year. They all have performed above expectations. Its the people around them that haven’t. Having basically no 3rd baseman all year didn’t help.

well i think that all the young guys…martin loney kemp ethier young hu abreu and laroche will all improve over the offseason. so that is a very good thing. now all we can do is watching and see what develops in the offseason. right now the only players that are untouchable in my mind are: martin loney and bills. so this WILL be a very interesting offseason in terms of the future for the los angeles dodgers for years to come

I hate to think it was the last time I felt this way, but back in 1981, Yes in the dark ages. I worked nights for the MTA and I had trouble getting a vacation for the World Series for some reason. But we were allowed to listen to the radio. It was the last game and the Dodgers had opened it up and were driving to victory. My boss, a Yankee fan, a good sport though, told me to go to the nearest bar and watch the rest of the game, since he knew I was a Dodger fan and I quess he was sick of looking at me. I went to the bar and watched the Dodgers win the World Series amongst no other Dodger fan and I couldn’t cheer. Some of those guys at the bar were tough and MAD. Cursing the Dodgers. I watched the post game and left. I went back to work dancing and singing and laughing, in the street. I got back to the office before the guys in the white coats. Most people had no idea. Not many Dodger fans are left in N.Y. In ’88 when Gibson hit the HR my neighbor actually called the cops.

ya if he is healthy, which i think he will be. this guy is a gamer..for years it seemed like every time the dodgers needed to win a game against the giants..he was pitching. but that was a couple years ago. i still think that he has some stuff left in the tank and the combination of a healthy penny lowe bills and schmidt(maybe another pitcher johan?) would be a very dangerous pitching staff.

Grady said before the game that the Dodgers need to “stay the course” with their young players and their plan and not stray from it. He asked, part rhetorically and part earnestly, what the Dodgers had been doing since they last won the World Series in 1988, a clear reference to the fact the team’s longstanding method of signing high-priced free agents simply hasn’t worked out, and that the current plan of drafting and developing is the right one.

Rafael Furcal, who stole 37 bases last year and was expected to trigger the offense in combination with Juan Pierre, injured his ankle in March and had only 12 steals before September — he and Pierre producing on-base percentages that would be impressive only if combined.

“Ever since Ned and I came to this ballclub, we do everything together,” Little said. “When decisions are made that work out OK, we celebrate together. When decisions are made that don’t work out too good, we cry together. We don’t sleep at night together.”

Is there any logical purpose to giving Wells another start at this point in the season? What are we going to learn – whether to sign him up for another year or two? You might even wonder why Loaiza got the start last night. It seems to me that Stults and Houlton could have been tried in a start or two since our standing in the division was no longer affected. To me it just shows the total lack of plan by this management. Point out to me any real success that Colletti and Grady have combined in this season, and don’t point to any play by the younger guys, because that seems to have been done too late and too reluctantly. This management has been a total failure, and I am only hoping that Mr. McCourt does not prove himself to be the same.

Pierre will be the Dodgers biggest asset when he’s gone from LA. Yesterday’s line up should have included Ethier. Pierre is not worthy of playing in 200 or 300 or however many games he’s played in a row, he is a non factor when it comes to production therefore not a guy who needs to play every day.

I did something horrible last night at the game. In all my years of going to Dodger Stadium I left even before the game was over, I left in the 8th inning. Looked over to my girlfriend said “let’s go this is just horrible”, so we got are new fleece blankets and left.

I wonder what Marlon Anderson’s status is at the end of this season. I would rather have him than Sweeney as the LH pinch-hitter and utility man. I’d also want to make sure that Saenz, Hillenbrand, Martinez, Seanez, and Hernandez are gone without any invitations extended to come to Spring Training.
Most of all I’d like to se a new GM and manager for the Dodgers.

Well it’s what I call an “official possibility” now. In his ESPN.com chat yesterday afternoon, Jonah Keri of Page 2 confirmed the Johan Santana for Matt Kemp and Clayton Kershaw rumor that’s been generating a lot of buzz here at MLBTR. Let’s discuss, shall we?

Kemp and Kershaw both have 6 years before they reach free agency. Santana has 1. There’s the obvious red flag right there, Dodgers fans. But if Los Angeles GM Ned Colletti wants to win now, and he usually does, Santana could be the golden ticket. I shudder to think of how dominant Santana could be not only in the NL but also in Dodgers Stadium.

If you’re the Twins, and you know you can’t afford Santana, I think this is a no-brainer. Especially if (big if) you think you have Francisco Liriano returning to form.

The question remains: Is an ace like Johan what the Dodgers need to win? I’m not so sure. They’re rotation has been solidified by the emergence of Chad Billingsley. With a scrapheap lineup of Gonzo, Nomar, and Pierre, Matt Kemp could become their best hitter as early as… tonight.

charris, If the Dodgers can trade for Santana and sign him to an extension, he is absolutely worth anybody that they are giving up for him. The extension is the key. Kemp may turn out to be a .300 hitter and a guy who hits 30+ HR’s, but then again he may not. If you have the opportunity to go out and sign or trade for, arguably, the best pitcher in all of baseball who is only 28 or 29 and your cost is 2 guys who “could” be stars, you absolutely have to pull the trigger.

kiper, I agree but I still think we should counter offer Ethier/LaRoche/Kershaw and see if the Twinkies bite. If the Dodgers do end up making that move, we better either get Hunter or Jones as well though. Come to think of it, why don’t we try Ethier/Pierre/Kershaw and eat half of Pierre’s salary. Go get Hunter and have D Young, Kemp and Hunter in the OF next year.

The extension is the key to a Santana trade. Unless we can lock him up for five or six years, it doesn’t make sense to give up Kemp or Kershaw, much less both of them. I too would prefer to give up Ethier, LaRoche and Kershaw rather than Kemp as part of the package, but none of it for just next year’s guaranteed service.

The Twins 3B Punto hit .212 this year, they have a BAD outfield and are losing their ace, I think the other proposed trade makes more sense for them, they might even go for a Ethier/Pierre/LaRoche deal and we can sit on Kershaw, but who knows.

“We don’t have any interest in letting players of that character wear anything but a Dodger uniform,” said Colletti. “I saw his first start in Jacksonville a couple of weeks ago. He is going to be a real good pitcher, a big-time, big-league performer.”

Forget the trade portion of the deal, that’s insane enough, but that’s where the insanity starts.

If we are “fortunate” enough to sign him to an extension we will be paying one player 20+ million a year for 5 years+ to play 1 in 5 days.

Where it ends is paying 20 million for a third starter. Santana decline is starting if no one noticed. He is still one of the best pitchers in baseball but not even a top 5 pitcher this year. It’s insane.

jungar, Santana’s numbers will make a significant drop in the NL next season. No Indians, Tigers, Yankees, Red Sox, Angels, Rangers, or Mariners to contend with, not to mention the DH, and a league that isn’t used to facing him. I still think that getting Santana should be contingent on an extension though.

Was anyone else embarrassed last night?…Forget trading for Santana( very bad idea), let’s trade Ned before he finds another Loiaza..Cannot believe how horrible he is..Keep Kemp and let him grow…not sure about Hu and LaRoche…but what we don’t need is Ned making anymore stupid acquisitions..don’t trust him at all during the off season..and with another year of Grady….we can only pray we don’t have a disaster again….I felt that we were kindergarten players against the Rockies professionals..it was a joke, that started with the AWFUL Loiaza…didn’t get too much better pitching-wise after that, but at least Loney always stands out.

Santana would be awesome. But not 20 million awesome. A million a win is best case..A smart man (not Ned) would use that money much more wisely, and as I mentioned we were 7th in era this year and that without Schmidt or Santana and putting up with alot of era’s over 5 (tomko, hernandez, loazia, wells, hendu, lowes second half etc)

Consistent offense in DS is what is needed and Kemp is the centerpiece of that going forward.

Hu and Laroche are not ready to hit at this level. They will be soon. They need to figure out what they are going to do if Kent does not return. We don’t need another Pierre signing, they need to go in with a plan. We need to strong up the middle, we have a great catcher, good ss, and guy in center who can go get them, but can’t throw out the trash.

jungar, I totally agree to take Kemp off the tradng block but looking at the Twins team stats, they are a team desperate for offensive pieces. We seem to have good trade candidates that will potentially fill their needs (excluding Kemp and Kershaw). As for 20 million a year, you have to remember that he only plays 1 out of 5 days but he gives us favorable match-ups the other 4/5 games. Penny, Lowe, Bills, and Schmidt’s W-L should improve because they are facing-off against weaker pitchers.

Santana is what we hope Kershaw becomes, but Kemp is a high price to go along with it. And it only makes any sort of possible sense with an extension, not as a one-year rental. If Kershaw becomes Santana and Kemp becomes Dave Winfield or, worse, Willie Mays, we fans will really rue the day that deal was done.

Honestly? Is this really a line up that can contend for a World Series? There is no PROVEN power hitter, yes, you will all tell me there is potential, but we need a PROVEN power hitter. There is no leader, Furcal and Pierre are vets but not leaders, unless Martin accepts the mantra. I love these guys but have reservations about LaRoche, Hu/Abreu and Ethier. I also know about the gaping weakness that is Pierre. I want the Dodgers to be back in contention and back amongst the elite teams, unfortunately this line up does not put them there.

I think the Dodgers need to be honest with themselves first of all, and figure out what they are going to do and stop throwing out old washed up vets that think they can still play (gonzo). But like people have said before, we could have probably have won at the least about 10 more games if it hadn’t been for Grady Little and his lack of manager savvy.

Kiper, we need a proven power hitter, but not a washed up power hitter. If that became available then we should look into it, but only if that would happen. I really think pitching we will be okay, Bills has proven he can pitch, maybe next year someone will step up.

“Penny, Lowe, Bills, and Schmidt’s W-L should improve because they are facing-off against weaker pitchers.”

charris, that is a specious argument. All teams rotations do not stay synced up – aces do not always face aces. Example: Jake Peavy made five starts this year against the Dodgers. His opposing starters were, earliest to most recent, and once each: Schmidt, Kuo, Penny, Lowe, Loaiza.

Fogey, agreed although rotation re-alignment seems to occur when big series are around the corner. If we do qualify for the postseason, would their be a team in the NL that could match up well with Lowe as a 3? Or Bills as a 4?

momo, Sorry, but I don’t agree. When I say a PROVEN power hitter I mean a guy who HAS hit 30 or 40 + HR’s in a season over an extended period of time. I am not saying a 40 yr old, but a guy in his late 20’s early 30’s who other teams are aware of his presence in a line up. I am talking about a guy who hitting behind Kemp will help him hit 30 HR’s a guy who hitting in front of Loney will give him more RBI opportunities. The kids on this team have not done it, yet. I believe Kemp and Loney can be power hitters, but for next season, if the Dodgers are serious, they need that extra bat.

If the Padres need the last game of the season to clinch a playoff spot, Peavy will start, which will mean he’s not available for game 1 of the playoffs. Depending how the first round goes, a team’s ace is not always available for game 1 of the next series. Realignment always depends on the off-days preceding the big series; both teams don’t always have them.

I guess what I’m saying is don’t take a fine-toothed comb to it; you want to have studs at the front end of the rotation. Period. If Lowe, with the season’s he’s had for the Dodgers, is your team’s 3rd best starter, that’s pretty good.

I can’t believe that many of you support a Kemp and Kershaw for Santana trade. I think that would be a huge mistake, one that would be regretted for years to come. I hope that Dodger management is smart enough to realize that.

What’s the rush with Santana? We’ve waited 19 years for another championship, what’s a couple more to see what Clayton Kershaw is really about. That way we keep a 5-tool player in Kemp…and bid for Santana, if he files for free agency, down the line. I mean, to me, it’s a no-brainer.

I agree…Don’t trade Kemp and Kershaw or anybody for Santana…We need a power hitter the most…and no more awful signings like Loaiza..Have no faith that Ned knows what he is doing though…Isn’t there someone else in the room when he makes decisions that can veto stupid moves???

but how bout we try to get hanley rameriez. i was watching the cubs game yesterday on WGN and the ball jumps off hanley’s glove. so scouts have said that he is the most overall talented player in the major leauges besides AROD.

I dont know if I am right but there are rumors that Kent might not be coming back? How true is this? If this was true, I would like to see the Dodgers push for a good third baseman (A-Rod or Miguel Cabrera) and move over Garciaparra to second. Garciaparra is by far a better fielder than Kent and his numbers should be getting better once he is 100% healthy. I would like to see Nomar at second. Get rid of Kent! Adios Kent!!

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